


Don't Leave Me

by Jam_less



Category: ARMY - Fandom, Kpop - Fandom
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-13
Updated: 2018-04-13
Packaged: 2019-04-22 06:14:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14302596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jam_less/pseuds/Jam_less
Summary: In the depth of an overwhelming war, seven boys fight to get an advantage over the other side without having to sacrifice anything too great.





	1. Chapter 1

July 28

Fear is a powerful tool that can be used to do almost anything. It can play tricks on your memory, and your perception of reality. Few people have the courage to stand up to what they fear most. Kim Seokjin’s dad knew this as he towered over his son, raising his walking stick threateningly.

“You better not fail again,” he spat out, letting his eyes rake over Seokjin’s face with a look of such deep disgust that hurt more than any physical pain. Even the pain he knew was coming.

“You’re so lucky I got you into this job, so lucky I helped you keep it even when he wanted to fire you!”

Seokjin continued to stare at the floor, ashamed, afraid. “I’m sorry, father,” he said loud enough for his father to hear, but no louder. He barely was able to hold himself back from saying more, wishing to yell that he had tried his best. Wishing to point out that he might have failed, but he had brought back the means to succeed through a captive. 

“You think an apology will fix what you’ve done?” he yelled, pulling back the stick in his hands and swinging it until it make contact with his own son’s side, “I should disown you.”

Seokjin staggered back as the blow hit his left side, striking right below his ribs with a force that could have easily hit a home-run. Though pain spiked through his body, he didn’t let it show on his face, though he couldn’t help but feel sick at his father’s last comment. He stood up and met his father's eyes, which he soon realized to be a mistake, as his father pulled back the stick again and brought it down on the same place as before, Seokjin stumbling back again to find himself run into a wall. 

"After what I just said, you still have audacity to look me in the eyes?" his father struck him again, this time the stick crashing into his hip bone, Seokjin unable to move, trapped against the wall, regretting his own thoughtlessness. "Get out of my house, you filth."

Knowing he wouldn't be let out that easily, Seokjin braced himself for another hit as he stumbled forwards taking two steps towards the door. He was thrown to a stop as he tumbled to the floor, his legs giving out due to a violent strike to the back of his knees. Now on the floor with his knees under him, he curled his hands protectively around the back of his neck as his father brought the stick down along his back, bruising his wide shoulders as they absorbed the blows, each one starting up a new wave of pain that echoed through his body. He silently pleaded for mercy, his eyes fluttering closed as his vision blurred from pain. 

Eventually the blows eased, and his father stood back panting, and tossed his walking stick aside. 

Seokjin slowly staggered to his feet, feeling the warmth of blood seeping down his back, soaking his shirt, his balance thrown off from the pain that jolted through him, making it hard to think.

"You're lucky this time," his father's voice split through the pain, "You've been given too many chances. Fail again and I won't be so lenient stopping."

***

Jimin threw on a confident face as he strode through the doors of his workplace, flashing his ID card to let them open in the first place. He always tried to look confident when walking the hallways, hoping it would help to give hope to anyone of a lower position than himself, anyone in need of hope that the war would end soon, that their side would win, even against the imposing odds. 

As he made his way to his office, he checked his watch to make sure he was on time, cradling his coffee in his left hand while rummaging through his bag with his right. Grasping what he was looking for, he pulled it out and tucked it under his arm, opening the door to his office once he had slid his ID card through to authorize it. His room was spotless as always, pristine and perfect, in which he prided himself greatly. It was one of his beliefs that a messy workplace meant messy work quality, so he cleaned up every time he left his office at the end of the day, though there was usually nothing to clean. 

As Jimin set down his bag next to his desk, his watch emitted a sharp alarm, enlightening him on the fact that he was going to be late to his meeting with Namjoon. He cursed under his breath and silenced the alarm, gripping the folder he had tucked under his arm and racing out of his room to the conference room where they had agreed to meet. 

As he rounded the last corner, he spotted Namjoon walking into the conference room and called out to him, "Namjoon, nice to see you've made it!" 

"Jimin," Namjoon said, a smile tugging at his lips, "Same to you."

"Are you ready to start?" Jimin asked, walking into the room and taking a seat at one side of  the table as Namjoon did the same at the other side. 

"Of course. I was meaning to ask you about Jungkook once we were together, the search hasn't been going greatly in the past few days, and we really need some extra men if we want to find him out there."

"Namjoon, the search is already taking up too many men, besides, how do we know he's still even in Seoul?" Jimin said, though it hurt him to think of Jungkook not being found, "I also needed to talk to you about that."

"Yes? Namjoon responded, slightly annoyed at Jimin's response. 

"We haven't had a single sighting of him since..." Jimin paused, taking a deep breath as the horrible night came back to him, "...since he was taken. He could be anywhere by now-"

"Which is why we need more men," Namjoon interrupted, "You know what'll happen if they find out what he knows."

"That's not what I was going to say, and you know it," Jimin shot back, "We need to cancel the search. He's most likely been taken far from here by now, we have little to no chance of finding him, even if we had more men to spare."

"But Jimin, what about everything he knows?" Namjoon argued, "That could end the war if they found out."

"I have to trust him," Jimin said, "We have to trust him. Jungkook is stronger than all of us. If anyone can take it, he can. I just hope he isn't going to be hurt to badly."

"Isn't going to be hurt too badly?" Namjoon scoffed, desperate to get his case over, "You know this is war, right? They aren't going to take it easy on him. He's a captive who has information they need. They're going to torture him until he breaks, or they'll kill him."

"I know this is war, goddamn it!" Jimin yelled, slamming his fists against the table, "Out of everyone here, do you really think I don't realize what's going to happen if we lose?" He froze, embarrassed that he had let his temper get the best of him, but he couldn't help it. "I'm sorry, I haven't been sleeping much lately."

As Jimin sat back in his chair he clenched his jaw, his fingers curling into tight fists.

"No, I'm sorry," Namjoon said quietly as he watched Jimin's explosion, "I shouldn't have gone that far. I know you've gone through more than most of us, after what happened with Jihyun..." 

"Please don't bring it up," Jimin said, closing his eyes as emotion filled them at the mention of his brother. His voice broke as he responded, and he was aware that he must have sounded far weaker than he would have liked, "I don't want to lose anyone else. You can have another week for Jungkook, but no more men."

"Thank you," Namjoon responded, changing the subject, "I've been meaning to talk to you about Taehyung."

"Yes, what about him?"

"I think he's been struggling after Jungkook disappeared, they were always really close. I was wondering if I should give him the next couple of days off, to help him cope."

"Your choice. Personally I would rather have work, so I have something to keep me distracted after losing someone," Jimin's voice quivered as the subject of losing someone came up again, "but Taehyung has always been different in how he handles his emotions. You could ask him if he wanted the days off, and move forwards based off his answer."

"That sounds like a good idea, but you know how he is after things like this. I don't want him to overwork himself, I might make him take the days off."

"Do whatever you think fit," Jimin responded, turning the conversation over to a new subject, "I've been meaning to talk to you about the rumors of you having a partner recently, but I didn't get a chance."

"Yes, what about it?" Namjoon asked, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. 

"Be careful when talking about work, and please do a background check on the person before you get together with them."

"Jimin, we've been together for a few months now, and I'm quite a few steps ahead of you. Not only did I do a background check on them, but also their family and most of their friends. I've played it super safe, you know I would never put anything above work."

"Yes, but I also know you have a tendency to get too attached to some things. Don't go asking for trouble, okay?"

"I would never do that," Namjoon said, knowing perfectly well the rules about having a partner, and that he had gone above and beyond to keep himself and his work safe. 

"You can never be too careful," Jimin responded.

 

July 29

Loneliness eats away at a person's soul, latching onto them and only growing larger over time. Every second Taehyung spent alone, the hole where his best friend had once been grew larger, begging for attention, eating away at him. Maybe this is why when his phone buzzed in his pocket to alert him that someone was calling him, he answered, even though there was no caller ID, no reason to. Maybe it was the longing to speak to another human that urged him to slide the green button across the screen of his phone. Whatever the reason, Tae found himself speaking casually into the phone. "Hello, this is Kim Taehyung," he said, immediately disgusted by how natural it sounded. 

"Kim Taehyung," The voice on the other line repeated. 

"Yes?" Tae asked, confused, "Who is this?"

"If I am correct, you were a close colleague to Jungkook?" The voice asked, Tae's mood changing in a split second at the sound of his friend's name. 

"That is correct," he said, almost choking on his words, "Why is it important?"

"Because if you want him returned to you alive, you will do exactly what I tell you," the voice said again, their tone staying the same even though what they said was in a much different mood. 

Taehyung scoffed, "Yeah right. How do I know you actually are with Jungkook?" he asked, but fear edged across his voice. 

"Let's just say I  always keep my word. All the information you need to know is in your email."

Tae quickly turned on his computer, typing in his password and responding at the same time, "If you actually do have him, why would you be telling me that?"

"Because there is something I need you to do."

"Why can't you just do it yourself?" Tae asked, scanning his email to see a message from an unknown sender, the message untitled. He opened it up as the person on the phone responded.

"Because it needs to be an inside job."

Tae's heart sank as he read his task, "I can't do this," he said, "I can't kill anyone. What makes you think I would do this for you? I don't even know if you actually have Jungkook."

"Scroll down," the voice said, and as Tae did so, he heard his phone beep, the unknown caller hanging up. 

Taehyung's breath caught in his throat as he saw what was attached to the message further down. There was a picture of Jungkook, but not one Taehyung had ever seen. In this picture, Jungkook sat in a white room, tied to the chair he sat in. His eyes were dull, his clothing torn and dirty, multiple open cuts visible on him. 

"No," Taehyung whispered to himself, clenching his jaw as he scrolled down to see more pictures, and at the very bottom, a video. 

He slowly moved his mouse so it hovered over the play button, building up the courage to click, but before he knew what was happening, the video started. 

Jungkook sat in the same white room as in the first photo, still tied to his chair. His eyes were devoid of emotion, and he looked away as the camera was pointed at him. 

"Say hi to your friend, Jungkook," the same voice from the phone said, the person still not showing in the video though. 

Jungkook finally looked at the camera, and when Tae looked into his best friend's eyes, he felt tears rolling down his cheeks, his chest seeming to be empty, but so heavy for some reason. The once soft brown eyes were harder than he had seen before, betrayal and pain clearly visible in them, though there was still the same sparkle of hope that Jungkook always held. 

There was laughing from behind the camera, but before Tae could see what happened next, the video was over. He realized that he had been gripping the edge of his tables throughout the short video, his knuckles turning white at how hard he held. Slowly letting go, Taehyung stood up, anger coursing through his veins. He couldn't let Jungkook die, but for all he knew, Jungkook wasn't going to even be returned, so what would the point be in doing something to stop it? He had been given an objective, a target, but as he stared at what he was supposed to do, dread filled him, and he knew he wasn't strong enough, but something he had seen in Jungkook's eyes made him think twice about quitting. Something in his memories of Jungkook, who he wasn't ready to lose yet. 

 He sent everything off his desk with a crash as he swept his hands angrily across the surface of the desk, slamming his fists into the table before his knees gave way.

***

Namjoon opened the door of his house and walked inside, looking around for his partner. They had gotten home from a business trip today, and Namjoon had yet to hear how it turned out, coming home earlier than usual so they could spend the rest of the day together. The lights were on, and and he began to walk down the hallway once he took off his shoes and coat, hanging one on the rack and placing the other on a mat next to the door. 

Intending to surprise the person in their room, Namjoon sneaked down the hall, but only took a few steps before he felt himself step on something wet. Looking down, he saw a small drop of blood where he had stepped, and instead of entering his room, he turned right, heading into the laundry room to grab a towel and wipe up the blood, confusion and worry seeping slowly into him. 

He only had to open the door of the laundry room to see a large T-shirt tossed onto the washing machine, red liquid dripping from it's once white cotton fabric. 

"Jagiya?" Namjoon called, grasping the shirt before turning and running quickly into his room. When he opened the door, his eyes scanned the room before stopping in a figure that sat on his bed, their face buried in their hands, only looking up once Namjoon walked in. 

"Namjoon?" the person asked, looking up at him with soft brown eyes, from which tears were streaming down his face, "I d-didn't think you would be home so early."

"Seokjin, what happened?" Namjoon asked, his face contorted with worry as he lifted up the shirt to display, taking a seat on the bed next to his partner.

"Nothing," he insisted, wiping away the tears, though his eyes were still puffy an red, "I'm fine."

Namjoon watched his counterpart fold his hands behind his back as if to hide something.

"Jin, why are you crying?" Namjoon asked, "and why was your shirt all bloody in the laundry room? You can't tell me you're fine, I'm here to help you."

"You wouldn't understand," Jin said, standing up, and wincing as pain shot through his back, "I'm fine."

Namjoon caught sight of a dark purple color on Jin's hands, and reached out, catching him by the wrist, causing Jin to gasp in pain. "What is this?" Namjoon asked, pointing at his hyung's hand, which were bruised a purple color. 

"Namjoon-ah, I'm sorry," Jin said, pulling his hand away, "I just need to handle this on my own. I don't want to be your burden all the time." Namjoon's eyes grew more worried as Jin pulled away, and he would have done anything in his power to help him. 

"Jin, I wish to help you. You might think that you are a burden, but this is what I want to do. Every time you reject my help, it hurts me more than you could think. Let me help you," Namjoon persuaded. 

"Namjoon," Jin said quietly, "You know I could never knowingly hurt you."

"Jin, if your father did this again and you aren't telling me..." Namjoon warned, stepping between Jin and the door, "You told me that he had stopped."

Jin attempted to sidestep Namjoon, but once he realized the other boy wasn't going to let him go anywhere he let out a sigh, "He had stopped. Or, I thought he had," Jin's voice broke, tears streaming down his face again, and he wiped at them with his sleeves, "He just got angry, and sort of... snapped."

"Who could get angry at someone like you?" Namjoon asked, wrapping his arms around him in a gentle embrace, but pulling back when Jin gasped in pain, clutching at his back. "It's your back too?"

"Yes" Jin said, breathing hard and pulling his sweatshirt tighter around the frame, "But I told you already, I'm fine. My back doesn't matter anyway. What he said..." his voice trailed off as he bit his bottom lip and more tears rushed down his face as he thought of his father's words, "was much worse than anything he did."

"Jin," Namjoon whispered, hurting to see his friend in pain, "Anything he said about you was most likely a lie. Don't let his words get to your head."

"Namjoon, you know how much he has done for me," Seokjin said, "I just wish I could please him... just once."

Namjoon placed his hands on his side if Jin's face, gently turning his head so they were facing each other, "Hyung, please don't change yourself for him. You're perfect just the way you are."

Before Jin could respond, Namjoon had leaned forwards, setting his lips against Jin's in a sweet kiss that caused the pain to disappear. Warmth spread through Namjoon's body as he stood there, closer to Jin than he had ever been before, happier than he had ever been before. When it finally came time to pull away, he opened his eyes, locking onto Jin's own. "Please don't push me away."


	2. Chapter 2

July 30

Taehyung fiddled with the trigger of his gun as he slipped it into the pocket of a long coat, concealing it as someone knocked on his office door. "Yes?" he asked, forcing himself to put on a normal face, to act casual. 

"Taehyung?" Namjoon asked as he peeked around the corner of the door, before stepping in. 

"Is there something you want, Namjoon?" Tae asked, trying hard to keep his emotions hidden. 

"I just came to check in on you, Tae," Namjoon said, walking over to his desk, "I wanted to know if you're doing okay after what happened with--"

"I don't want to talk about it," Tae snapped, picking up the file on his desk and shoving it into a drawer, "I'm fine. You can leave if that was all you wanted."

Namjoon watched Taehyung work for a few seconds, before he made a decision, "I would like you to take the next week off work, Taehyung. It seems like you need some time off."

Tae looked up, his expression turning from stubborn to angry. "A week? You think I need a whole week off?" he asked, glaring at Namjoon, "I don't want to take days off, I want to be here. Don't you think that helping with the effort to get Jungkook back would be better for me than sitting around doing nothing?" It crossed his mind to mention that if it had been himself who was missing, Jungkook would be working day and night to find him, though the thought caused him to choke on his words. 

"Taehyung, I understand that you want your friend back--"

"He wasn't just my friend!" Taehyung yelled, his fists clenched tightly as his sides as his voice broke, "H-he was my everything. You can't understand."

Namjoon looked at Taehyung sadly, wishing there was something he could do to help, but he knew he couldn't let Tae overwork himself in the next few days. "Three days," he compromised, "I'll lower it to three days, but no less."

 

 

Tae walked stiffly through the hallways, unable to think as he spotted the room in which his target would be, as he spotted the only known way to save Jungkook. He gripped the gun in his pocket, but as he approached the door, he turned left early, knowing he couldn't do it, at least not yet. Instead, he slid open the door to his direct left, walking past the name that was displayed on the front, walking into Jungkook's untouched, empty room. 

Tae strode into the familiar room, smiling as he spotted Jungkook sitting at his desk, working hard over multiple cases. The maknae barely glanced up as Tae closed the door behind him, but as his eyes flicked over the older boy walking towards him, the end of his mouth curved upwards into a smile. 

"You didn't come home last night," Taehyung said as he lay his palms out on the desk and leaned over towards Jungkook, who sat back in his chair in a failed attempt to avoid a quick kiss placed on his lips by Taehyung, "I missed you."

Though he couldn't help but smile, Jungkook pushed Taehyung away, turning back to his work, "I thought we agreed about not doing this at work."

"But you're never home," Taehyung whined, "I don't even know why we moved into the same apartment when I see you just as often as I did before."

"Tae," Jungkook said, looking up from his work in a serious tone, "I'm working. I'll be home as soon as I can, but there are things I have to do. Shouldn't you be working too?"

"How can I work when all I can think about is if you'll be home tonight," Tae responded, leaning forwards only to be pushed back again. 

"Hyung, you can't bother me at work like this!" Jungkook called out, though a smile was spread across his face, "I promise I'll be home tonight, I have tomorrow off so we could do something fun, okay?"

"Fine," Tae responded, making his way around the desk, "You better be there."

"I'll come around six," Jungkook swiveled in his chair to face Tae who had walked around the desk to stand next to him.

"I'll be waiting for you," Tae quickly pecked Jungkook on the mouth one more time before scurrying away happily. "I love you!"

Jungkook smiled, turning back to his work as Tae skipped cheerfully out of his office, "I love you too, hyung."

***

"You wanna fucking try to run it all then?" a familiar voice yelled from inside the bar as Yoongi swung open the door, heading in to get a late drink. He had just gotten off work, and most of the other men were most likely already drunk since it was almost midnight and most of them had already been here for a while. 

"You know what? I might as well, because we're not getting anywhere with whoever is currently leading us!" Another voice yelled, back and a murmur went through the bar, Yoongi walking in just in time to see a large, heavily built man slam his fist onto a familiar figure's gut, the shorter man stumbling back a few steps before he recovered, throwing his own punch straight into the larger man's nose, knocking him over with a sickening crack.

Yoongi stepped back in surprise as he recognized the man.  "Jimin-ah!" he yelled as chaos erupted, and the younger turned towards the door, his eyes widening as he realized what he had just done. Yoongi motioned for Jimin to follow him, slipping out of the bar before turning back out to face the door. 

As soon as the younger boy appeared, Yoongi looked at him worriedly, "Are you hurt? Did he hit you hard?"

"No hyung, I'm fine," Jimin responded, running his hand through his hair nervously, "I-I just lost control."

"You lost control?" Yoongi asked back, "Are you kidding me? You could have exposed the entire organization, or raised suspicions on your own profile. You can't lose control in a time like this. We need every man we can get."

"I know, I know. I'm sorry.  He started making some comments on the war that just got under my skin and I sort of didn't realize what I was doing until it happened, you know?" 

"Still Jimin, if you had gotten in trouble for that, excuses like this aren't going to help. No matter what he said, you have to stay calm."

"I usually am calm, but he set me off with these lies about us going to lose the war. Yoongi hyung, I don't even want to think about losing the war, about everyone who died..." his voice caught in his throat, "to have died in vain."

"That's not going to happen Jimin," Yoongi tried to comfort him, "We just have to keep it together and work through this."

"I am working, Yoongi," Jimin responded, "I work all the time, and I dread going to sleep because I know that those are more hours wasted on something other that trying to get us out of the deep mess we're in, but it just seems to become more and more work every day."

Yoongi sighed, not really knowing how to respond. He wished to help the boy who stood in front of him, but there were few ways he could think of. "When was the last time you slept?" he asked, looking at the dark bags under Jimin's eyes.

"I've been at the office for the past 48 hours," Jimin responded, "I wanted to grab a drink before I headed back home to get some sleep."

"I don't think you should be driving now, why don't you let me take you back?"

"Thank you, hyung."

 

 

Yoongi finished tucking Jimin in, watching as he fell asleep almost immediately, his worries seeming to disappear. Yoongi had driven back to Jimin's apartment, and planned on heading back to his own soon, but he wanted to stay for a couple more minutes to make sure Jimin wouldn't wake up alone, or in need of something. He sat down in a chair near the corner of the room, the cushions soft and comfortable as he sank into them. 

Though he had only wished to stay a few minutes, he found sleep tugging at his eyes. The curtains let in little light, and the only noise in the room was the soft breathing of Jimin, Yoongi's calm surroundings pulling him into a deep, peaceful sleep. 

 

July 31

Yoongi set out a mug, turning off the coffee maker, but leaving the coffee in it. He could have easily poured it in one of the mugs he would find around Jimin's kitchen and take it to work with him, but the coffee he was making wasn't for him. He planned on picking up a coffee on his way over, stopping at his usual place. This coffee was for Jimin. 

The younger boy was still asleep up in the room, exhausted from overexertion during the past few weeks. Yoongi left the coffee in the maker so it would still be warm when Jimin woke up and came downstairs, though he didn't expect that to be anytime soon. 

As Yoongi got ready to take his leave, he looked around the house, thinking hard about last night. They hadn't been too close, but whenever he was him, Jimin was always kind, friendly and compassionate. They had worked within the same building for a few years now, and he had often heard Jimin conversing with others, or seen him in the hallways, always receiving a welcoming, friendly vibe from him. They had once worked on a case together, but it ended rather shortly, and he hadn't gotten much time to get to know him.

It had been slightly unnerving to see Jimin lose his temper like that, even if for just a moment. He gritted his teeth at the thought of what someone could have said to trigger such an intense reaction from someone such as the boy sleeping upstairs. At the same time, Yoongi was glad it had been Jimin and not himself, for he had a short temper and would willingly jump into a fight with just about anyone.

Glancing at his watch, Yoongi decided to stay a few minutes longer, turning and heading back towards the stairs that lead to Jimin's room. He quickly, but silently slipped up the stairs and entered the dark room where the boy was sleeping soundly, his tired eyelids closed, his features splayed peacefully across the bed, seeming to be more beautiful than Yoongi had noticed before. He quickly released a sharp breath before sitting back in the chair he had slept in last night, perfectly content just watching Jimin sleep as the soft morning light began to peek from behind the curtains. 

***

"Here! Turn right now!" Jungkook called frantically, pointing to the right side of the road where there was a large parking lot, ahead of which a vast beach spread out as far as the eye could see, few trees blocking the view. 

"Crap!" Taehyung laughed as he missed the turn, looking back to see if he could still manage to turn around, but he had already passed the entryway, so he quickly moved to Plan B: blaming Jungkook. "Weren't you supposed to be watching ahead for the turn? You didn't tell me until the last moment," he accused lightheartedly.

"I was looking at the map!" Jungkook smiled, "I didn't realize the turn came up so soon."

"I told you it wasn't a good idea to let me drive! I don't even have my license, you're the good driver."

"I thought it would be good practice. Besides, since you have your permit and I'm in the car to supervise it's not illegal."

"You're supervising me? Then I'm going to have to ask you to look the other way," Tae said as he quickly turned around on the two-lane road, racing into the turn he had just missed without a problem. 

"You driving may not be illegal, but that was!" Jungkook called, slapping Tae's upper arm playfully, "You need to follow the rules if you ever want to get your license."

"Who said I wanted to get my license?" Tae asked, "Because I certainly didn't." He glanced over at the younger boy, and would have slapped him back if he hadn't had both his hands on the steering wheel. 

"You wouldn't be saying that if I didn't drive you everywhere you need to go."

"You don't drive me everywhere, it wasn't you who just drove to the beach, was it?" Tae said slyly after parking the car and jumping out, Jungkook following his lead, the two meeting up at the back of the car. 

Taehyung looked out across the beach, the wide expanse of roaring ocean filling his senses and reminding him of how much he had loved the beach when he was younger. He still loved to visit the beach, the calm, yet overpowering sight always filling him with a sense of peace that he found nowhere else, though he rarely had the free time to actually come to the beach. 

"Did you put on sunscreen yet?" Jungkook asked, tossing him the tube, "You don't want to get sunburned."

"I was busy driving, so I didn't have time to yet. Is this what you were doing while you were supposed to be watching for the turn?" Tae responded, opening the sunscreen and beginning to smear it along his left arm. "I always hated putting sunscreen on as a kid, it took up too much time when I wanted to be doing something else."

Jungkook poured some sunscreen into his own hands, and pulled Tae closer once he was finished with his arms. "Let me help," the maknae said without letting his counterpart respond, carefully smearing the white substance along his cheeks. 

Taehyung closed his eyes, his heart racing as he felt Jungkook's soft fingers traveling across his face, gently brushing his hair out of his eyes and rubbing the sunscreen in.  Wherever the younger boy's fingers touched, heat erupted beneath Tae's skin and his lips curled upwards happily as Jungkook adjusted his head to put the sunscreen on more easily. 

"What are you smiling at?" Jungkook's voice floated into his ears along with the beating of waves against the sandy shore. Taehyung stayed silent, enjoying the moment until he felt the Jungkook's hands slide down to rest on his shoulders, and became aware of an abrupt presence against his lips before he opened his eyes and met Jungkook's own sparkling ones. 

Before he could say anything, Jungkook had taken him by the hand and turned away. They both smiled as Jungkook pulled Tae towards the thundering ocean, the scent of salt filling his nose. 

 

The summer heat seemed to be sucked from the air, the sky morphing from blue to grey as the coming winter started to show. Taehyung stumbled to a stop in the sand, Jungkook's hand seeming slip from his own as the younger boy was suddenly gone, Taehyung slipping back into the cold, empty reality. His eyes flicked across the scene in front of him, the beach that had once put him at peace and allowed him to relax and forget about his responsibilities now bringing back painfully sweet memories. 

The waves crashed against the sand, the cold air messing up his hair, and the smell of salt lingering in his nostrils. It was the same scene it had always been, the same place, but something was wrong. Something was missing.

When standing here had once provided him with comfort, it only seemed to reopen a fresh wound that he had been doing his best to cover and avoid. It left him helpless, and though he stood on dry sand he felt as if he was drowning, unable to reach the surface, unable to get a breath. 


	3. Chapter 3

August 1

The door swung open for Seokjin as he walked out of the briefing room, his head down, eyes scanning the room quickly only to find his father waiting for him, arms crossed. 

"Sit down," he said coldly, "What happened in there?"

Jin sat in the chair his father had pulled up for him, a shiver running down his bruised spine as he passed less than a foot from his father. "I got a new target," Jin said, pulling the file out of his bag and placing it on the table, stuffing his hands in his pockets quickly to hide the fact that they were shaking as his father reached for the file and opened it. "There's very little information on him, but there was a recent sighting in the city a week ago. We have an appearance description, but no photo."

His father scanned over the file, taking in everything Jin had said. "Rebel strategist," he read out loud, "This is ridiculous."

Jin nodded his head, about to agree that such a mission with this little information was practically impossible, but his father continued without giving him the chance, "Why would they ever give such an important case to someone as incapable as you? They should have known better after last time."

The words were dripping with poison, stinging as they rung through Jin's ears. He looked down at his feet and shifted uncomfortably. 

"I won't be helping you this time," his father stated, leaning over the table and whispering into his ear, causing Jin to freeze in fear, pressed against his chair as if to get as far from his father as possible, "You're on your own. This is your last chance. Don't fail."

***

"That's no the point!" Namjoon argued, "I'm just asking for a few more days! There was a sighting, so we know Jungkook's in the city!"

Jimin sighed, "I can't say no to this after there is proof that he's nearby. I'll give you an extra week before we close down the case. Namjoon, if he is out there, finding him any later than that won't help. I can assure you, he'll be too far gone."

Namjoon nodded in solemn agreement, thanking Jimin. "I'm sorry to leave you so soon, but I have to get to work on the case. Every moment counts," he said, "I'll call you if anything happens."

"Sounds good," Jimin responded, watching as Namjoon raced through in the direction of his office. 

The news about Jungkook had been uncovered this morning, a sighting of him reported nearby, though the trail had run cold in a matter of minutes. The thought of being so close to Jungkook but unable to find him caused Jimin to be on edge, unable to close his eyes without going over a list of all the places the boy could be. It plagued him worse because he had been the one to send Jungkook out the night he had been kidnapped, it was his fault Jungkook was gone. Though nobody ever mentioned it, Jimin knew that everybody knew, knew everyone had pieced it together in their minds, knew they weren't saying anything only because they were afraid to place more stress and guilt in his already over-burdened shoulders. 

Jimin shook his head to clear such thoughts from his mind, knowing they wouldn't help him, instead trying to focus on what was at hand. Because the news had come in this morning, Jimin realized that Tae most likely hadn't heard yet, as he had the day off. Jimin quickly took out his phone and dialed in Tae's number, planning how to break the news to the younger boy without giving him too much hope, or making it seem hopeless. He found himself sighing in relief as the call was sent to voicemail, attempting to call again only to have the same thing happen. 

"Hey, you okay?" a deep, concerned voice asked. Jimin turned to see Yoongi standing behind him, his brows furrowed in a shy, worried fashion.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Jimin found himself running his fingers through his hair as he stuffed his phone in his pocket and looked at his hyung. His eyes scanned over Yoongi's features quickly, trying to remember the thanks he had planned out to tell Yoongi, but his mind seemed empty as the two of them locked eyes. "Th-thanks for your help yesterday," he started, trying to form words in his mouth as he seemed to stumble over his own tongue, "I really appreciated it." 

The days before had been incredibly difficult to get through, especially with such little sleep. Jimin knew he should have walked out of the bar as soon as the first comment on the war was made as he usually did, but at the time he hadn't been thinking, the stress combined with the lack of rest causing him to make choices he would never have made otherwise. 

"It was no problem," Yoongi responded, "It happens to the best of us."

"I'm just glad you were there to save me from doing anything worse than that," Jimin said, before changing the topic, "Thanks for the coffee also. I did get quite a bit of rest yesterday like you advised."

Yoongi smiled, "I'm glad. You deserved it after working so hard with such little sleep."

"Thanks," Jimin said, before looking at his watch to see he had limited time left in this conversation, "Is there anything you needed?"

"Yeah," Yoongi started, "There was a new case that came in today, it said I was partnered with you on it, I just wanted to know if you wanted to go over a course of action tomorrow, maybe over dinner?" Yoongi fiddled with the ring on his thumb, unsure of why he was so nervous in asking such a question. Partners discussed cases over dinner all the time, this should be no different, but he held his breath as he waited for an answer anyways, afraid of tipping the scale to a certain answer. 

"Of course!" Jimin smiled cheerfully, "Just text me, I'm sure I can make it." He scribbled his number onto a sticky note before handing it to Yoongi. "I've got to go now, but maybe I'll see you around?"

"Maybe," Yoongi responded, clutching the note in his fingers as he watched Jimin walk away.

 

August 2

Taehyung had left the beach mere minutes after he had arrived, unable to stand the emptiness it filled him with. 

Instead he had come home and got to work, planning out how the task would go, a pencil in hand. He was bent over a map of his work building, marking down anything that could be needed, including the office of his target, the nearest exits and any shortcuts out of the building. He had been planning out many different ways to go forth with his task all day, but in the end, he couldn't picture himself building up enough courage to pull the trigger. The thought of killing anyone caused his guts to twist in his stomach, it only becoming worse with the fact that he had strong personal connections with his target. He had gone through the scene many times in his mind, but was never able to truly picture himself pulling the trigger, never able to picture himself killing anyone. 

The only thought that scared him more than killing someone is the thought of being able to save Jungkook, but not having the strength to go through with it, and Jungkook dying because of him. 

You can do it, he had been telling himself all day, It'll be easy. He said this hoping that if he told himself this enough, it would come true, but he couldn't feel any difference. 

A sudden buzzing from his pocked caused him to jump, his hands shaking visibly as he clawed his phone from his pocket and accepted the call, placing it next to his ear. "Hello, this is Kim Taehyung," he said, his voice weaker than he had remembered. 

"Taehyung," a sweet voice responded, causing shivers to run down the boy's back, "You're taking quite a while to complete this task. Is it too much for you?"

"No!" Taehyung said desperately, "I've been off work for the past three days, so I wasn't able to. Please, I just need a little bit more time. I can do it, I swear!" 

"Don't be testing my patience," the voice responded. "You have three more days. Get it done or I'll shoot Jungkook myself." The words caused Tae to grip the desk in front of him, his knuckles turning white as the threat echoed through his ears, his heart sinking. 

"Please," he whispered, "Let me talk to him. I just need to hear his voice, then I can do it." He could barely hear his own voice, but the man on the other side of the phone seemed to hear perfectly well. 

"You can hear his voice once you've finished your task," The voice responded coldly, "Get to work."

"No! I won't deserve such a luxury after that," Tae pleaded, "I just need to know he's alive."

"Fine, but I expect it done in two days then, no more," the voice bargained. 

"Okay, please just let me talk to him."

"Wait for a moment," the voice replied, before there was only static coming from the phone, though the call didn't end. 

Tae sat there for at least ten minutes, rocking back and forth in his chair with his phone held to his ear until the static was gone, and the voice was there again. "You have one minute. Make it quick." Then there was a moment of silence before another voice spoke into the phone, this one's beautifully familiar tone causing Taehyung to melt in his chair, his mind becoming a mess. 

"Taehyung?" Jungkook's voice asked. He sounded weaker than usual, but the sound of his voice filled Tae with courage and hope. 

"Jungkook?" he asked, a tear trickling down his face, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Jungkook responded, "It's you I'm worried about. Have you been eating?"

"Yes," Taehyung responded, biting his bottom lip, "How about you? Have they been feeding you?"

"Yes," Jungkook responded without hesitation, but Taehyung could hear the conflict in his voice. 

"Stay alive for me," Tae said, "I love you. I'll get you out of there no matter what it takes."

"No, Taehyung I'm fine! Please don't do anything they tell you. I would rather die than help their them win the war," Jungkook said, and Tae could hear people shuffling around in the room, someone ordering another to take the phone. 

"I'm going to get you out of there!" Tae repeated, ignoring Jungkook's pleas. "Stay alive for me!"

Jungkook began to respond, but the phone beeped, signalling the end of the call, cutting him short. Tae sank into his chair again, his energy gone, the little courage he had been building up nowhere to be found as he thought of the seemingly impossible task at hand. 

***

Namjoon shrugged off his coat after walking closing the door to his house. It was late, and he had had a rough day, the search for Jungkook becoming more draining with the new sighting, the trail always running cold no matter how hard he tried. Their effort for the war seemed to be doing little to nothing, the odds looming over them. 

The only comfort Namjoon found was coming home to Seokjin, though he had rarely been able to do that in the past few weeks, as he had found himself stuck in his office overnight many times in the near past. 

As he stepped into the house, a the warm smell of cooking meat wafted to his nose, causing him to smile and take off his shoes and coat quickly, walking into the kitchen where Jin was cooking over the stove. 

"You haven't been cooking in a while," Namjoon commented as he walked in, looking over to see what was being cooked. Jin turned around at the sound of his voice, smiling as he caught sight of Namjoon. 

"I thought you might want something homemade, besides, it relieves stress," he responded, turning back to the food on the stove.

"Thanks," Namjoon responded, "I'll be upstairs getting ready for dinner if you need me."

"I'll call you when it's ready," Jin responded.

 

"This smells delicious," Namjoon commented as he walked back into the kitchen, wearing a much more formal outfit than before. Jin was finished preparing for dinner, everything set out on the table, the older boy making the final adjustments. 

"Thank you," he responded, "Go ahead and take a seat, I'll be there in a moment."

Namjoon did as he was instructed, seating himself in his usual spot, soon joined by Jin who sat in his own spot. "You made my favorite!" Namjoon smiled as he eyed the dish. 

"You've been working really hard lately, so I wanted to make something you enjoy," Jin responded as they helped began to serve themselves, "It didn't take as long as usual."

"That's good," Namjoon responded before taking a bite. "This is really delicious. Thank you for thinking of me."

"Of course!" Jin laughed, "How could I not? It might sound cheesy, but you're the most amazing person I've ever met."

"You wouldn't be saying that if you met yourself," Namjoon replied wittily, his tired expression morphing into a smile. "So what have you been doing all day?"

Jin took another bite before responding, "I went to the store and restocked our fridge with everything you put on the list. I did some of your laundry, because it was beginning to pile up again and I knew you wouldn't do it yourself. I also did a little cleaning, but not much."

"What would I ever do without you?" Namjoon laughed. 

"You would come home to a mess, that's for sure."

"Good thing I have you here isn't it then?" 

Jin smiled. "I guess so."

***

Jimin rapped his knuckles along the door in front of him, butterflies filling his stomach as he did so, even though he had no reason to be nervous. 

Yoongi had cancelled dinner, asking Jimin to come over to his place and discuss the case there instead, claiming that they might be overheard in public, so it would be safer to be somewhere with fewer open ears. Jimin had agreed to the idea, and now he stood at Yoongi's door, his stomach twisting into knots as he waited to see if the older boy had heard him knocking. 

Barely a few seconds after he had knocked, the door opened to reveal Yoongi standing on the other side with a welcoming smile spread across his face, a rare sight even for those who were close to him.

"Come in, come in!" he pulled to door open wider, gesturing for Jimin to come in. "Don't get cold standing around out there." 

It was barely winter yet, so it wasn't actually cold, but Jimin did what he was told, stepping into the house. "You've got quite a nice little place here," he commented as he looked around the small, comfortable house. Though it wasn't the nicest place he had ever been, or the cleanest, it gave off a warm vibe that he hadn't expected from someone such as Yoongi.

"I was in a rush to clean it as soon as I confirmed I would have a visitor," Yoongi responded back honestly, taking Jimin's coat for him and hanging it up.

"You didn't have to, I'm no-one important," Jimin laughed, slipping off his shoes before Yoongi lead him to the kitchen.

"You're basically my boss, so I'd say that's someone important," he responded as they both entered the bright kitchen, Yoongi opening a box of pizza and offering it to Jimin. "I didn't know what you like, so I got multiple types."

"Thanks," he responded, taking a piece that looked good and setting it onto a plate offered by Yoongi. Once they both had food, Yoongi lead them to the kitchen table and sat down, reaching for a file on the counter nearby and placing it in front of them. 

"This is the case we were assigned to," he said, flipping it open to reveal page with information on their target, a small picture paper clipped to the page. 

Jimin picked up the picture, scanning over it. It showed a fairly young man, who seemed to be about Yoongi's age. He had dark black hair, and a long face. He was smiling, his eyes sparkling and something about the photo was uncomfortably familiar to Jimin. He felt as if he knew who he was looking at, but couldn't quite place them. 

"Are you alright?" Yoongi asked, leaning to look over Jimin's shoulder at the picture, "You look as if you've seen a ghost."

"I'm fine," Jimin assure his hyung, handing the picture over as he put the thought out of his mind. He couldn't know the person in the picture, he must have bumped into him on the street or something like that. "So what's the objective?"

"Ummm," Yoongi leaned over the file and scanned over it with his eyes, "It looks as if this guy was spotted recently nearby. He's supposedly someone important working for the other side, and we're supposed to track him down and capture or kill him."

"Really?" Jimin asked, "The file's pretty small for that. Do we even know his name?"

"Name: Unknown," Yoongi read out loud, answering Jimin's question. 

"Where was he last spotted?"

"It says here that the last sighting of him was in Hongdae. He was wearing all black and his face was mostly covered other than when someone ran into him and his hood slipped," Yoongi sighed, "There are a few other sightings here, but none of them seem significant. This is a really small file for such a trying case."

"We'll need a good plan for this. I suppose we could send a team to look for him in and around Hongdae. They could notify us as soon as he is sighted. The only problem is how far that is from our main office building. We would need a fast way to get there," he said thoughtfully. 

"The team would have to stay well undercover, we don't want any suspicions rising," Yoongi put in, "and we don't even know if he would return to Hongdae. I say we split up the team and send a small group to each of the places he was spotted. That way we have a higher chance of finding him, and hopefully he'll show up at one of the places that's quicker to get to."

"Don't we have another office building closer to Hongdae? I remember Namjoon talking about something like that recently," Jimin asked, pulling out his phone to check. 

"Yeah, I heard about that too. We could ask to set up an office there so if we are called it would be easy and quick to make it there," he looked over the file once more. 

"One of us would have to stay at the main building in case he was sighted further from Hongdae, so we can be prepared for if he was to show up almost anywhere," Jimin offered, finding the building on his phone. "I have to oversee everyone at the main office, so I would prefer to stay there if you could stay at the other location. You only have to stay there from 10:00 to 4:00, we can meet up afterwards to discuss more details or a new plan of action if this doesn't work out."

"This sounds like a plan," Yoongi said, smiling. "I'll be heading over to the other office building at about 9:30 tomorrow morning then. Expect me to show up at about 4:25 at your office to give a report."

"Sounds great! Now the only thing we need to do is assemble a team to keep a lookout on the locations of the sightings," Jimin responded, turning to Yoongi.

"Why don't we start making a list of who we want for the team right now?" Yoongi asked, giving Jimin a look that sent a rush of warmth through his body. "After all, neither of us has finished our pizza."

***

Yoongi handed Jimin his coat, his heart almost leaping from his chest as they brushed hands. He swallowed the lump forming in his throat and forced himself to speak. "T-tonight was great," he tripped over his own tongue.

They had long since left the subject of their case, moving on to other matters such as Jungkook's disappearance. Jimin seemed quite broken up about the topic, but that was to be expected from someone who had been so close to Jungkook, where as Yoongi had barely even talked to him. Though he wasn't opposed to discussing it, Yoongi could see the pain in Jimin's eyes every time Jungkook was mentioned, and he only wished to embrace the younger boy, or at least find some way to comfort him.  

"Hopefully the case works out well," he brought them back to the important topic, reminding himself that it was the only reason Jimin was here. 

"I'm sure it will," Jimin said as he slipped on his coat, turning back to face his hyung. "It's pretty late, so I should be going, but I enjoyed tonight."

"Me too," Yoongi responded barely able to resist the urge to step closer to the younger boy as he opened the door for him. "I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

"Yeah," Jimin responded as he stepped out the door, eyes locked with Yoongi's, "I'll see you tomorrow."

Yoongi watched as Jimin strode away, looking back once he reached his car, waving goodbye to his hyung as he jumped into the car.

"Goodnight," Yoongi whispered, raising his own hand to wave slowly. He stood there until the car disappeared around a corner, the night suddenly seeming much colder once it did so.


	4. Chapter 4

August 3

"Are you feeling well enough to be back at work?" Jimin asked, taking a seat across him at the younger boy's desk. "I've been worried about you."

"I'm fine," Tae responded, unsure of how many times he had repeated that phrase in the past week. "Really." It had always seemed to provide a certain comfort to the person he had spoken to, even if it wasn't true. Even if he felt like breaking down and crying, or hurting himself. He said it for the benefit of the person in front of him, but Jimin didn't seem to be tricked. 

"I understand what you're going through," he responded, "I'm here to help. You can tell me anything."

"I know," Tae responded, looking up from the work on his desk. "I just want it to be true. I want to be fine." Jimin listened intently, remembering how he had felt after a similar thing had happened to himself. "It's so hard to walk around in the same place as before, but to have it feel so different, so empty. It's as if a single string has come loose, and if even brush against it-" Tae's voice caught in his throat.

"It'll all come undone," Jimin responded, "I know what that's like."

"I just want him back," Taehyung whispered. "Is that too much to ask?"

The older boy curled his fingers into fists, unable to respond as he watched his friend in such pain, wishing he could comfort him.

"Jimin-ah?" Taehyung asked, pausing before he continued, "I-if you could give your life to save Jungkook, would you?"

"Yes," Jimin responded without hesitation, "Would you?"

"If only it was that easy," Taehyung said as Jimin got up. 

"If you need anything, come find me. I can help," he said as he walked towards the door, "I have to go now, but maybe I'll come back later."

"Jimin?" Tae asked as Jimin opened the door of his office to leave, causing him to look back over his shoulder, "Thank you."

***

Jimin glanced at his phone again, wishing for the alarm call he would receive if the target of his recent case had been spotted, desperate for a distraction. It was 4:19, and he had nothing scheduled to do for this time, as he had always spent it hanging around with Jungkook and helping the younger boy with any cases that were difficult for him, though there were few of those as Jungkook had always been amazing at achieving his objective in less than a week, even though he was younger than most. 

He was usually successful in keeping the empty spot where Jungkook had once been filled while he was at work, but 4-5 was always the hardest time since he had spent so many days sitting in Jungkook's office and laughing with him or helping him through anything too rough. Recently Jimin had started eating dinner around this time, much earlier than he usually did just to have something to distract him from the dark hole where Jungkook should be that only seemed to grow with time, but because Yoongi would be showing up any minute, Jimin had to sit and wait, the clock seeming to slow as he silently pleaded for the lonely minutes to pass faster. 

He found himself staring at the screen of his phone, on which a picture of Jungkook and himself was displayed, the two of them wearing goofy smiles directed at the camera. It was a picture they had taken after Jungkook's graduation. The memory burned painfully in his heart and he didn't even notice as tears began to drip down his face. It is too much to see Jungkook's face so cheerful even though Jimin knows what is most likely happening to him right now.

Crash!

Before he knew what had happened, his phone had  to the ground, his fingers curled into a fist and his eyes closed tightly in a weak attempt to stop the tears. 

"Jimin-ah?" came a sweetly familiar voice, causing Jimin to open his eyes and turn towards the door of his office, which was wide open, Yoongi standing in it's wake. "Are you alright?" he asked, stepping forwards. 

It was easy to tell he wanted to help, but Jimin turned away, hoping he wouldn't have to show himself in such a weak state to his counterpart. He opened his mouth to assure Yoongi he was okay, but his lips moved against him, giving an answer that was less than desirable. "No," he shook his head, burying his tear-struck face in his little hands. 

A few seconds later he felt a warmth surround him, comforting arms embracing him. He leaned into Yoongi, reading his aching head on the older boy's chest as a response to the soft voice whispered into his ear, "Then let me help."

Jimin lost track of time as he sat there in Yoongi's arms, but his tears eventually stopped and he slowly sat up, turning to face Yoongi, who had let go and backed away. His eyes seemed uneasy, as if he was afraid of how the younger boy would react to what had happened, and he looked down like a skittish child, unsure of what he had just done. 

"Yoongi-ah..." Jimin said, clamping his mouth shut as his voice came out shaky and weak. 

Before he could continue, Yoongi cut him off, his heart racing. "I know," he said, looking ashamed. "You're my boss. I should't have let my feelings get in the way. I'm sor-"

"No," Jimin interrupted, not letting him finish, "I'm glad you did. Thank you."

Surprise flashed across Yoongi's face, his confusion obvious. "I thought you wouldn't want me to-" he stopped mid sentence and decided to change his approach, pausing every once in a while to try to read Jimin's reaction. "I like you, Jimin. I didn't even realize it until two days ago when I wanted to ask you to come for dinner to discuss the case, but was almost too nervous to say anything. The only reason I was able to ask is because I saw you in the hallway while I was walking down. It was in the moment, and it came out before I had time to doubt myself. The same thing just happened again. I did it before I had time to doubt myself-"

"Shut up," Jimin said softly, leaning forwards, "before I have time to doubt myself."

Jimin clossed his eyes and gently pressed his lips against Yoongi's, aware of the shock that caused Yoongi to hesitate before he too closed his eyes, returning the kiss. As soon as their lips touched, a flame ignited in Jimin's chest that spread through his body as if he was on fire, his heart pounding rapidly against his chest. He felt weak at the knees, unable to think or keep track of time, his mind filled by the felling of being so close to Yoongi, filled by the sensation of threading his fingers freely through his hyung's hear. Though it may have only been seconds, it felt like an eternity before they pulled away, panting softly. 

Once Yoongi's eyes opened, they stayed glued on Jimin, his features hiding his feelings, though it was easy to hear the excitement in his voice as he leaned in and whispered softly into Jimin's ear. 

"Thank you."

August 4

Jin's eyes scanned over the email he had just received, looking over the new information about his target that had just been discovered. There was a blurry picture, but it was from the side, and it would be almost impossible to tell what his target fully looked like from that. 

There was quite a bit more information, including an updated description of the person's looks, which he read over carefully before scrolling down to find a name. As he read over the name something in his mind clicked, and a horrible thought crossed his mind, making him want to gag. He slammed his computer shut and whirled around, dread filling his heart as he fell too his knees and grasped at his hear violently, not even noticing the pain that flared up from his back. 

"No!" Jin yelled at the empty room, his face contorting into one of pain and anger, though no physical pain could harm him this much. His mind whirled as he reached towards the box under his bed that held the only gun in the house. Namjoon had agreed to buy it in case something bad happened and they needed a weapon. 

Namjoon. He gets home at 3:00. Jin thought to himself as his vision blurred and his ears rang. He can help.

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, he pushed it away, but it was already there and his mind was becoming more jumbled every second. He felt his hand grip the box he was looking for, but his vision went black and the ground rose to meet him. 

 

"Seokjin?" a soft voice asked, casing Jin to look up from the gun he tightened his fingers around, hidden in his coat. 

He had sat here for a while after waking up, the initial shock of the email wearing off, his mind slowly beginning to wrap around the idea of what he had to do. Pain still seared through his chest when he thought about it, and he tried to wipe the tears from his face as he looked up to see Namjoon standing in the doorway. 

"Are you okay?" Namjoon asked, taking a step forwards, but Jin gestured for him to leave. 

"I'm fine," he forced a laugh, "I don't even know why I'm crying. I was just thinking about my father-" he stopped and took a deep breath," I hate him so much for this. For putting me in a situation where I have no choice, no say."

"You always have a choice, Jin," Namjoon said, "It just might not be obvious. There's always another way out."

Jin ran the words through his mind. There's always another way out. It made sense to him, but he couldn't see another way out, his mind racing for an answer. 

"Namjoon?" Jin asked, his voice almost catching in his throat.

"Yes?" he responded, beginning to look worried.

"I just want you to know that I love you. I love you so much, and I wish I wouldn't have to do this, but I'm not strong enough for the other way out. This is the only way," another tear raced down Jin's face. 

"I don't understand. Jin, what's going on?" Namjoon pleaded, stepping towards him. 

Jin's mind had calmed as he accepted what he had to do, his body no longer shaking. His thoughts were a blank canvas and he could clearly see the task at hand. "Please don't hate me," was all he had the strength to say before he pulled the gun from his pocket.

BANG.

***

Taehyung pushed all the thoughts from his mind in an attempt to calm himself, before pushing open the office door in front of him, spotting his target sitting at his desk. 

“Hyung?" Tae asked, the gun hidden in his packet, his heart pounding.

“Yes, Taehyung?” the older boy asked, looking from his desk, "Do you need something?"

“Do you think Jungkook is alive?” the words were out of Tae's mouth before he could think to stop them.

“Yes, I do,” his hyung responded, putting down his pen and giving Taehyung his full attention. "We're doing everything we can to find him. It's just a matter of time."

“What would you do to save him?” Tae found his mouth moving on it's own. 

“I would do anything," the older boy responded. "Anything."

“Would you trust me if I told you I found a way to save him?” Tae knew he was giving too much away, but there was nothing he could do about it. The person who stood in front of him was his friend, and he needed to get the job done quick before he doubts himself. 

“Taehyung, what's going on?" his target insisted, taking a few steps around his desk, looking worried.

“If I found a way, would you want me to save him?” Tae asked again, more insistent this time. 

"Yes, of course," he said, "Did you find him?"

“No matter what?” Tae ignored his question.

“No matter what," he responded, sighing.

“Do you trust me hyung?” Tae said, begging to feel something, anything. He was empty, his feelings numb, every emotion gone from his body. 

“Taehyung. I would trust you with my life," Jimin said, giving him just the strength he needed. 

"Thank you," Tae whispered, just loud enough for Jimin to hear before his lifted his gun from his pocket, pulling the trigger before the older boy could respond. 

BANG.

 

 

"It's done," Tae said, bitterness filling himself as he heard the voice on the other line.

“You have done well, Taehyung-ah. Jungkook is free because of you," the sweet voice said. 

Tae had to hold himself back from yelling into the phone, wishing to blame it all on the man on the other line, but he knew he couldn't. He was the one who had let Jungkook go off alone. It was only fit that he be the one to pull the trigger. To feel the consequences. What disgusted him the most was his lack of feeling. He felt numb, as if nothing had happened, his body empty. He had just killed his best friend, yet he lacked regret, remorse. He lacked joy that he had saved Jungkook, which made him want to hurl.

“Can you tell him something for me?" Tae asked, not waiting for a response, "I don’t deserve to talk to him after what I’ve done, but I want you to tell him something from me."

"I think I can do that," the voice on the other line said.

"Tell him that I love him. Tell him that I’m sorry," Tae looked down at the gun in his hands, seeing his only way out, his only option.

Right as he lifted the gun to his temple, emotions filled him. They flooded over him, causing him to hesitate. There was joy that came along with the pain, the guilt, but it was small and he didn't deserve it. It was as if he was being offered a small comfort in his worst moment, he pushed it away, not wishing for pity, or mercy. He deserved nothing. He had done something horrible, and even if it was for the right cause, his only relief was the fact the Jungkook was alive, and the sensation of pulling the trigger. 

BANG.


	5. Chapter 5

Namjoon sat in the chair, a single moment in time filling his thoughts, replaying over and over. 

"Please don't hate me," Jin had said, his eyes wide as he pleaded from where he sat, next to their bed. 

Then he had moved in what seemed like slow motion, pulling a gun that had been concealed in his coat. 

BANG. 

The gun had been lifted to Jin's own temple before Namjoon even realized what had happened, still standing at the door way in shock. 

"No!" when Namjoon finally came to his senses it was too late. His counterpart was sprawled across the ground, gun in hand, blood seeping from the hole in his head, staining the rug they had recently chosen out together.

Now, Jin's body had been carried away, and Namjoon sat alone in his house. The police would show up in about an hour to search the house and interrogate him about what happened. He didn't feel like thinking of something to say. 

Instead, Namjoon got up, staggering towards the door to his room. After taking a few steps into the room, his eyes landed on the dark red stain in the rug, his knees growing weak at the sight as he felt bile rise in his throat. 

He leaned against the desk next to him for support, regretting his decision to enter this room. As he set his hand on the desk, he accidentally hit the space-bar on the keyboard of Jin's computer, the screen flashing on. 

Distracted, Namjoon turned to the screen, only to find an open email. His eyes scanned over it, confusing sweeping through his mind as he read more, only bits and pieces registering in his mind. 

Objective: Find and kill.

His mind raced as he read more, and dread burst from his chest as he saw a picture of the target, and thought blurry, it was painfully familiar. 

As it all began to register and fit together, impossible thoughts crossed his mind, and he hoped it wasn't true. 

His hopes were crushed as he read the last part of the email, his knees falling from under him. 

Target Name: Kim Namjoon

Jin had been assigned a mission to kill him. 

***

Yoongi had always felt neutral towards funerals. He always sat silently through them, watching those who had lost someone close to them, wondering why they had ever let anyone get close to them, knowing such a thing would only cause irreversible pain. 

He had always considered himself smarter than that, taking careful steps to keep others away, to guard himself from the pain. He had learned the hard way that others were more trouble than they were worth, losing all of his family, along with his only friend from a few years ago, at the beginning of the war. He had built his life off them, using them as support and help, but once they were gone, it all collapsed leaving him to slowly try to rebuild it his own, struggling to make his way back to his former self. 

Now he had made the same mistake, letting himself get too close to someone, too attached. Once again, Yoongi was learning this same, repeating lesson. He was feeling the same pain he had grown so afraid of, but this time it was different, fresh and worse than he had remembered. 

They had barely known each other for a week, yet he felt as if his whole world was being torn apart. He knew it was his fault, yet he felt no regret. It was worth it. Even being with Jimin for just a few days had been worth the excruciating loss he felt, so there was no regret in him as he stood on the frozen ground, the icy morning breeze piercing through his thin jacket. 

He hated Taehyung for what he had done. He had killed Jimin, one of his best friends, even though Yoongi know that put in the same situation, he would have done it too. Yet that didn't stop him from feeling the deep, passionate hatred for Tae. His only comfort in that topic was the fact that Taehyung was dead. It was a cold comfort though, knowing that another one of his friends had died, even if he would have killed Tae himself if he hadn't done it. 

By the time he had sorted his feelings, everybody was long gone. The funeral had more been for show, Jimin's remains burned and spread by the wind along the beach, his favorite place to be. The younger boy had never liked the thought of his corpse rotting in a cold coffin underground, trapped in the cold soil. There was a certain freedom and comfort knowing that he now traveled with the wind, as free as a bird flying over the beach. His ashes had already been let fly across the beach, that having taken place two days prior. 

Now as he stood alone, Yoongi remembered the letter that had been addressed to him from Jimin. He had never built up the courage to actually open it, so it still sat in his pocket. But now, in the dim morning light, Yoongi pulled the envelope out and scanned his eyes over it, before he carefully opened it. 

The letter inside was folded, and when he opened it, he recognized Jimin's neatly written letters, though there was a certain urgency to the writing, as if he had been in a hurry. His eyes scanned over it, he heart pounding as he read. 

 

To Min Yoongi,

If you're reading this, it means Taehyung went through with his task to save Jungkook. I've been watching him closely over the past week, and was able to hear of his plan as soon as he knew of it. He has always been strong, so I assumed he would come though, and I'm not afraid. Tae has been one of my best friends for a while, and I value him over myself. Once I'm gone, please take care of him, and don't let him do anything rash. Where there is life, there is hope, and he needs someone to show him that. 

I desperately hope the man who gave Tae this deal keeps his word, and releases Jungkook. If so, I need you to make sure he is okay. I'm glad to have the opportunity to give my life for him, so please don't let him waste away and cause this sacrifice to be in vain. 

Lastly, I wanted to address some words to you, Yoongi. I'm sorry our time had to be so short, and I apologize for any pain I may have caused you in leaving. I love you so much, but please don't be quick to join me, I will be watching you and hope you enjoy the time you have left on Earth. Take care of yourself and please stay healthy. Eat a lot! I love you, and will be waiting for you when your time comes. 

Till death do we part, 

Park Jimin

 

Yoongi didn't realize tears were streaking down his face until one fell onto the letter in his hands. He quickly wiped them away, knowing Jimin wouldn't want him to cry. 

Everything fit together like a puzzle, Jimin's letter opening Yoongi's eyes to what had been going on. He quickly made a promise to himself not to cry about Jimin anymore, but to be happy of the few memories they did share.

The deep loneliness inside him seemed to disappear as he thought of Jimin watching him from Heaven. 

"Thank you," he said, looking up towards the sky, a new task at mind. "Thank you, Park Jimin."

Finished, Yoongi folded up the letter and put it back in his pocket before turning away, only one thought in his mind. 

Find Jungkook.

***

"Why are you even doing this?" Jungkook asked his captor, anger filling him as he stepped into his apartment. 

"I told you," Jung Hoseok said, "I'm a man of my word."

"He's dead. Because of you!" Jungkook turned, glaring at them man standing in his door frame. 

"I didn't pull the trigger," Hoseok laughed, stepping forwards. 

"You didn't leave him a choice!" Jungkook yelled angrily, "He's better than you. He can't kill someone without feeling the consequences. You used him! You used me!"

"This is war," Hoseok said, raising his hands as if to mock the younger boy who stood in front of him. 

Jungkook turned away, realizing he can't win if he keeps this up. He slowly stepped towards the door of the closet where he keeps his shoes, opening it before turning back to Hoseok. 

"I know why you did it," he let his hand drift into the shoe closet, closing around something he kept in there for times like this, "and I'm sure you know why I'm doing this." He lifted the gun in his hand, pointing it at Hoseok's chest, the older boy stepping back, only to find himself trapped against a wall.

"You killed him," Jungkook growled, "I'm not going to let you get away with that."

Hoseok lifted his hands above his head, his eyes pleading with Jungkook. 

"I used to believe in an afterlife. In a God. But then you came along. I didn't understand how anyone could just watch as killed and ruined without even thinking of how it would feel to be on the receiving end," Jungkook pressed the gun against Hoseok's chest, calmly continuing. "But now I do believe in an afterlife. Because life is short. You spend a few moments with the person you love before they're gone. But once I die, I can spend an eternity with Taehyung, I can see him again."

"You won't be going to heaven if you pull that trigger," Hoseok said, desperation edging into his voice. 

"Heaven. Hell," Jungkook laughed, "It doesn't matter. I'll gladly go to Hell if it means Tae is there waiting for me."

BANG.

**Author's Note:**

> This is the same story as Best of Me by Jam-less on Quotev, who is me, there was no plagiarism involved.   
> Link to Original:  
> https://www.quotev.com/story/10348527/Best-of-Me


End file.
